>>>I think its quite common for people with a mental problem to not think they need help. I have a sister who suffers from paranoid schizophrenia and a recurring issue is that she stops taking her medication becuase she feels "better" so doesn't need it any more.
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>>Are you saying you've concluded he has a mental problem? Does bad judgment = mental health issue?
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>Alcoholism is a disease. One of its side effects is bad judgment.
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>Tamar

Addictions certainly have physiological roots. I don't dispute that.

But many have poked some good holes in the general classification of alcoholism as a disease. With many diseases, medical science can measure/observe characteristics, symptoms, physical anomalies, etc early in the process. There's far less empirical data when it comes to alcoholism - too much of the diagnosis comes after the fact. Big difference.

If I smoke a ton of cigarettes for years or drink excessively or if I eat 100 cheeseburgers a day for the next year or if I expose myself to a huge amount of radiation, odds are quite strong that I'll develop severe medical conditions. It's a different story with alcoholics - there is far more guesswork on whether someone will become an alcoholic in the future.

Bottom line, it's problematic to generally assess alcoholism as a disease.